Going urbanana!
Discover the urban jungle of Western Germany
The banana-shaped urban jungle that extends from the Ruhr Area and Düsseldorf to Cologne is so strange and at the same time multi-faceted that you should urgently consider paying a visit to this western region of Germany
urbanana – a triple metropolis?
The train journey from Bochum-Ehrenfeld to Cologne-Ehrenfeld, or from the Dortmunder U to the NRW Forum in Düsseldorf, takes less than 90 minutes. Journeys like these are completely normal for creatives living in the urban jungle of North Rhine-Westphalia. Let #urbanana show you how to spend a weekend shopping, chatting and partying in the Belgisches Viertel (the Belgian quarter) in Cologne, recuperating on a beach on the Rhine in Düsseldorf the morning after and then immersing yourself in the gallery scene, before - finally - discovering the new Ruhr Area on Sunday. One attraction during your trip might be the “Zeche Zollverein” colliery lighthouse, although this World Cultural Heritage site certainly won’t be your last discovery.
Urbanists take note
Together with the creative community, we come up with a network of ideas for your bucket list. Whether it's art or design that you’re interested in, whether you are drawn to #urbanana in order to buy fashion items from small studios, or want to party at more than 200 festivals in North Rhine-Westphalia, we attempt to clear paths through the urban jungle, together with our people on the ground, to take you with us to undiscovered territory - whether you’re just passing through or plan to stay for the long term.
Authenticity as fetish
Not everything is fantastic here, and that’s not what #urbanana attempts to portray. urbanana itself cannot be authentic, but it aims to bring you into contact with people who love and co-design their urban area and who can tell you in all sincerity why you should definitely come back for another visit. The city is their sometimes ramshackle playground, their building site - and their pride and joy. If you would like to take a guided tour with the locals from urbanana, check out the section on blogs below.
